DOCSLIB.ORG

Sifting Poles from Germans? Ethnic Cleansing and Ethnic Screening In

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Sifting Poles from Germans? Ethnic Cleansing and Ethnic Screening In Sifting Poles from Germans? Ethnic Cleansing and Ethnic Screening in Upper Silesia, 1945–1949 Author(s): HUGO SERVICE Reviewed work(s): Source: The Slavonic and East European Review, Vol. 88, No. 4 (October 2010), pp. 652-680 Published by: the Modern Humanities Research Association and University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41061897 . Accessed: 25/08/2012 13:48 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Modern Humanities Research Association and University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Slavonic and East European Review. http://www.jstor.org SEER, Vol. 88, No. 4, October2010 SiftingPoles fromGermans? Ethnic Cleansingand EthnicScreening in Upper Silesia,1 945-1 949 HUGO SERVICE I The ethniccleansing which engulfedCentral and EasternEurope in the firsthalf of the twentiethcentury was oftena matterof indiscrimi- nate expulsionin whichlittle or no timewas takento reflecton the culturalidentity of the victims.Yet not all of it was carriedout in this manner.The occupiersand governmentswhich implementedethnic cleansingpolicies in Poland and Czechoslovakiaduring and afterthe Second World War came to the conclusionthat there were many inhabitantsof the territoriesthey wished to 'cleanse' who could not be instantlyrecognized as belongingto one nationalgroup or another. They decided to subjectthese people to rigorousethnic screening to ensurethat only genuine members of unwantednational groups were uprooted. Ethniccleansing was combinedwith ethnic screening, for example, in the territorieswhich Germanyannexed fromPoland in autumn 1939,where it tookthe formof theDeutsche Volksliste (DVL). The DVL requiredpeople livingin these territoriesto fillout special question- naireswhich the Nazi German authoritiesattempted to use to deter- minewhether they were Germans, cof German descent' or Poles. It was targetedparticularly at the linguisticallymixed areas of the annexed - territories easternUpper Silesia,part of theDanzig regionand part of southernEast Prussia- where the Nazi leadershipassumed that a large proportionof local inhabitantswere ethno-raciallyGerman and should thereforebe culturallyassimilated into the German Volk The Nazi German authoritiesultimately categorized the majorityof people livingin each of theseareas eitheras Germansor 'individuals of Germandescent' by enteringthem into one of the fourcategories of the DVL. In the annexed territoriesas a whole the authorities enteredaround 2.8 millionpre-war Polish citizens into the DVL. This shieldedthem from expulsion to the General Governmentor to other Hugo Serviceis a BritishAcademy Postdoctoral Fellow at theFaculty of History,Univer- sityof Cambridge. HUGO SERVICE 653 - partsof the annexed territories thefate of around one millionpeople duringthe war, most of them residentsof the so-calledWartheland region.1Meanwhile, in occupied Czechoslovakia,the Nazi regional governorof the so-calledProtectorate of Bohemia and Moravia,Rein- hard Heydrich,developed similar plans to culturally'Germanize' half of the territory'spopulation and eitherto sterilizeor to uproot the otherhalf eastwards. As thefirst step towards fulfilling this plan, between 1941 and 1943 his authoritiesethnically screened thousandsof the inhabitantsof thisterritory, categorizing each as either'Germanizable' or 'un-Germanizable'.2 The defeatof Nazi Germanyin 1945 by no means put an end to large-scaleethnic screening in East-CentralEurope. Indeed, in the aftermathof the war, as approximatelythree million 'Germans' were being expelledor forciblytransported to the US and Soviet Occupa- tion Zones of Germanyfrom Czechoslovakia, the country'spost-war - governmentdecided that since it was not alwaysclear who was a - Germanand who a Czech among the inhabitantsof theircountry anotherround of ethnicscreening would be necessary.Local courts were set up throughoutthe countryin 1945 to judge people's ethno- nationalidentity based on whateverevidence was available. In subse- quent years,they categorized thousands of people as ethnicCzechs, sparingthem fromdisplacement from the country.3While this was goingon in post-warCzechoslovakia, a similarprocess got underway in post-warPoland. This ethnicscreening process, introduced through- out the new westernand northernterritories which Poland acquired fromGermany at the end of the war,was knownas the ethnicVerifi- cationaction' (akcjaweryfikacyjna) and will be the primaryfocus of this article. 1 Zofia Boda-Krçzel, Sprawa volkslistyna GórnymSlqsku. Koncepcjelikwidacji problemu i ich realizacja,Opole, 1978, pp. 22-26 and 33; Zdzislaw Lempiriski,Przesiedlenie lusnosci niemieckiej Z województwaslqsko-dqbrowskiego w latach ig^-igjo, Katowice,1979, pp. 89-92; Wiodzimierz Borodziej,'Einleitung', in H. Lembergand W. Borodziej(eds), "UnsereHeimat ist uns ein fremdesLand geworden. ." Die Deutschenöstlich von Oder undNeiße ig^-ig^o: Dokumenteaus polnischenArchiven, 4 vols, Marburg, 2000-04, 1, pp. 37-113(pp. 42-43); Ingo Eser, 'Die Deutschenin Oberschlesien',in ibid.,2, pp. 360-99 (pp. 372-73);Pertti Ahonen, Gustavo Corni,Jerzy Kochanowski, Rainer Schulze, Tamas Stark,Barbara Stelzl Marx, People on theMove: Forced Population Movements in Europein theSecond World War and itsAftermath, Oxford, 2008, pp. 29-34; Mark Mazower, Hitler'sEmpire: Nazi Rule in OccupiedEurope, London, 2008, pp.2 193-98. Chad Bryant,'Either German or Czech: FixingNationality in Bohemiaand Moravia, 1939-1946', Slavic Review, 61, 2002,4, pp. 683-706(pp. 686-96); Tara Zahra, 'Reclaiming Childrenfor the Nation: Germanization,National Ascription, and Democracyin the BohemianLands, 1900-1945',Central European History, 37, 2004, 4, pp. 501-43 (pp. 527- 33)-3 Bryant,'Either German or Czech',pp. 696-700;Jeremy King, Budweisers into Czechs: A Local Historyof Bohemian Politics, Princeton, NJ, 2002, pp. 194-202. 654 SIFTING POLES FROM GERMANS The role ethnicscreening played in the ethniccleansing of East- CentralEurope duringand afterthe Second World War is relatively under-studied.A numberof recentbooks and articleshave looked at thissubject, including those by RichardBlanke, Chad Bryant,Andreas Hofmann,Jeremy King, BernardLinek, Piotr Madajczyk,Grzegorz Strauchold,Philipp Ther and Tara Zahra.4 Each of thesestudies has demonstratedthat it is not possible to fullyunderstand the acts of ethniccleansing carried out in thisregion during and afterthe Second WorldWar withoutcritically confronting the simplisticethno-national categorieslying behind these actions. But onlyHoffmann's and Strau- chold'sstudies have subjectedthe interaction between ethnic screening and ethniccleansing in thisregion at thistime to detailedexamination. Moreover,there has yet to be an in-depth,local-level analysis of the part ethnicscreening played in the ethniccleansing of East-Central Europe in the 1940s. - This articleseeks to provideprecisely that by focusingon the localityof Oppeln/Opole Districtin westernUpper Silesia.5'Western Upper Silesia' refersto the partof Upper Silesiawhich after the parti- tionof Upper Silesia in 1922remained in Germanyand was not incor- - poratedinto Poland the part of Upper Silesia which in Polish is referredto as SkyskOpolski. WesternUpper Silesia was one of the regionsPoland acquired fromdefeated Germany in 1945. A western Upper Silesianlocality has been chosenas thecase studyfor this article because this region was where the post-warCommunist-led Polish authoritiesfirst implemented ethnic screening in theirnew territories and wherethey did so on thelargest scale. Opole/Oppeln Districthas been selectedbecause it was one ofthe western Upper Silesiandistricts where ethnic screeningplayed a particularlyimportant role in the ethniccleansing process. 4 Richard Blanke, Polish-SpeakingGermans? Language and National Identity among the Masurians since1871, Cologne, 2001; Bryant, 'Either German or Czech'; AndreasR. Hofmann,Die Nachkriegszeitin Schlesien.Gesellschqfls- und Bevölkerungspolitikin den polnischen Siedlungsgebieten I945~I94ß->Cologne, 2000; JeremyKing, Budweisers;Bernard linek, Politykaantyniemiecka na GórnymSlasku w latach1945-1950, Opole, 2000; Piotr Madajczyk, PrzylqczenieSlaska Opolskiego do Polski1945-1Q48, Warsaw, 1996; Grzegorz Strauchold,Autochtoni, Polscy, Ntemieccy, czy . OdNacjonalizm doKomunizm (1945-1949), Toruñ, 2001; Philipp Ther, 'Die einheimischeBev- ölkerungdes OppelnerSchlesiens nach dem ZweitenWeltkrieg. Die Enstehehungeiner deutschenMinderheit', Geschichte und Gesellschaft, 26, 2000, pp. 407-38;Zahra, 'Reclaiming Children'. 5 By 'district'I mean both the Stadt- und Landkreis ofOppeln and thepowiat and miastoof Opole. Oppeln was the name of the districtbefore 1945. Opole has been itsname since 1945.The size ofthe population of Opole Districton 17May 1939,according to a nation- wideGerman census, was 198,100.Alfred Bohmann, Menschen und Grenzen: Strukturwandel der deutschenBevölkerung impolnischen Staats- und Verwaltungsbereich,Cologne, 1969, p. 209. HUGO SERVICE 655 This article contends
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Case of Upper Silesia After the Plebiscite in 1921
    Celebrating the nation: the case of Upper Silesia after the plebiscite in 1921 Andrzej Michalczyk (Max Weber Center for Advanced Cultural and Social Studies, Erfurt, Germany.) The territory discussed in this article was for centuries the object of conflicts and its borders often altered. Control of some parts of Upper Silesia changed several times during the twentieth century. However, the activity of the states concerned was not only confined to the shifting borders. The Polish and German governments both tried to assert the transformation of the nationality of the population and the standardisation of its identity on the basis of ethno-linguistic nationalism. The handling of controversial aspects of Polish history is still a problem which cannot be ignored. Subjects relating to state policy in the western parts of pre-war Poland have been explored, but most projects have been intended to justify and defend Polish national policy. On the other hand, post-war research by German scholars has neglected the conflict between the nationalities in Upper Silesia. It is only recently that new material has been published in England, Germany and Poland. This examined the problem of the acceptance of national orientations in the already existing state rather than the broader topic of the formation and establishment of nationalistic movements aimed (only) at the creation of a nation-state.1 While the new research has generated relevant results, they have however, concentrated only on the broader field of national policy, above all on the nationalisation of the economy, language, education and the policy of changing names. Against this backdrop, this paper points out the effects of the political nationalisation on the form and content of state celebrations in Upper Silesia in the following remarks.
    [Show full text]
  • Katowicka Ligota. Historia Rozwoju Przestrzennego. Wstęp Do Badań Katowice-Ligota
    NAUKA SCIENCE Anna Krukowiecka-Brzęczek* Katowicka Ligota. Historia rozwoju przestrzennego. Wstęp do badań Katowice-Ligota. History of spatial development. Introduction to research Słowa kluczowe: Katowice-Ligota, modernizm, Key words: Katowice-Ligota, modernism, Górny Śląsk, architektura przemysłowa, zabudowa Upper Silesia, industrial architecture, willowa villa housing WSTĘP. INTRODUCTION. WIADOMOŚCI OGÓLNE, ZASIĘG GENERAL INFORMATION, TERYTORIALNY LIGOTY TERRITORIAL REACHES OF LIGOTA Motto: Motto: Niejednokrotnie spotkać się można z błędnym mniemaniem, There is a common enough popular misconception that Silesia jakoby Śląsk nie posiadał zabytków architektonicznych godnych cannot boast any architectonic monuments worth preserving. zachowania. Jednak przeciwnie, zabytków tych jest wiele, ale te On the contrary, there are many such monuments, but those nienależycie konserwowane bezpowrotnie niszczeją. inadequately preserved are irretrievably destroyed. Tadeusz Michejda Tadeusz Michejda w: memoriał Związku Architektów na Śląsku in: a memorial of the Architect Association z 30 kwietnia 1927 roku in Silesia on April 30, 1927 Katowice – miasto ogrodów. Takim hasłem pro- Katowice – a city of gardens. Such a slogan pro- mującym obchody 150-lecia miasta władze zachęcają moting the 150th anniversary of the city is used by the do spojrzenia na przestrzeń stolicy Śląska w odmienny local authorities to encourage us to look at the space of sposób. W sposób pozbawiony stereotypów i piętna the Silesian capital in a different way, a way devoid of przemysłowej brzydoty. Gdzie więc znajdziemy rzeczo- stereotypes or the stigma of industrial ugliness. Where ne ogrody? Za jeden z nich możemy uznać położoną na shall we fi nd the mentioned gardens? One of them can południu Katowic dzielnicę Ligotę. be the district of Ligota located in the south of Katowice.
    [Show full text]
  • Poland's Voivodeships and Poviats and the Geographies Of
    Prace Komisji Geografii Przemysłu Polskiego Towarzystwa Geograficznego Studies of the Industrial Geography Commission of the Polish Geographical Society 30 (2) · 2016 UniversityStanley of Kentucky,D. Brunn Lexington, USA CracowMarcin University Semczuk of Economics, Poland PedagogicalRafał Koszek, UniversityPoland’s Karolinaof VoivodeshipsCracow, Poland Gołuszka, and Poviats Gabriela and the Bołoz Geographies of Knowledge: Addressing Uneven Human Resources Abstract: - - In a postindustrial economic world, information economies are key components in local, region al and national development. These are service economies, built on the production, consumption and dis semination of information, including education, health care, outsourcing, tourism, sustainability and related- perlinkshuman welfare are electronic services. knowledge We explore data the that geography/knowledge can be mapped to highlight intersections the areas in Poland’sof most and voivodeships least informa and- poviats by using the volumes of information or hyperlinks about selected information economies. Google hy tion about certain subject categories. While some mapping results are expected, such as Warsaw and Krakow, being prominent, in other regions there are unexpected gaps within eastern, northern and southern Poland,- including some places near major metropolitan centers. There is a significant difference between the cities with poviat rights, which stand out in the number of information on items comparing to the poviats that sur round them. The majority of poviats in Mazowieckie voivodeship are surprisingly recognized as core areas onKeywords: the map of knowledge, nevertheless they are considered undeveloped from the economic point of view. Received: Google hyperlinks; human welfare; knowledge economies; knowledge gaps Accepted: 13 January 2016 Suggested 6citation: June 2016 Prace Komisji Geografii przemy- słuBrunn, Polskiego S.D., Semczuk, Towarzystwa M., Koszek, Geograficznego R., Gołuszka, [Studies K., Bołoz of the G.
    [Show full text]
  • Regionalism in Upper Silesia the Concept of Autonomous Regions in Poland
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by ELECTRA - Electronic Archive of the Institute for Regional Studies, Centre for Economic... Regionalism in Upper Silesia The Concept of Autonomous Regions in Poland by Nóra Baranyai Introduction The decentralization of power, in particular, regionalization in the western and the eastern part of the old continent was brought about by both the European Union and processes of democratization, modernization and economic transformation. While in Western European states the structures built on state organization traditions and territorial units with regional identities were formed through centuries based on economic, political or ethnic considerations, in Eastern Europe the overdue feudalism resulted in the dominance of the central level instead of creating the culture of territo- rial governance and management. As a result, regional identity remained immature, moreover, in the characteristically multinational states it was overwritten by national and ethnic identity (Illés, 2002) with regional sig- nificance. In the initial phase of the transitional period the main objective in most Central and Eastern European states (CEECs) was the reinforce- ment of the nation state and the establishment of political and economic stability, decentralization and regionalization, therefore, were not topical issues. Later the reforms were related to several dissaprovals by the govern- ments and led to political debates among parties. Regional reform processes were formed by the lack of historical traditions and patterns of regional autonomy, the fear from the dissolution of the newly indepentent states’ unity (Yoder, 2003), which often resulted in hurried decentralization with the transformation of the institutional system and the regional structures.
    [Show full text]
  • This Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation Has Been Downloaded from Explore Bristol Research
    This electronic thesis or dissertation has been downloaded from Explore Bristol Research, http://research-information.bristol.ac.uk Author: Gorecki, Joe Title: National Identity and Experiences of Nationalism in Germany’s ‘Lost Territories’ Danzig/Gdask and Kattowitz/Katowice, 1919-1930 General rights Access to the thesis is subject to the Creative Commons Attribution - NonCommercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International Public License. A copy of this may be found at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/legalcode This license sets out your rights and the restrictions that apply to your access to the thesis so it is important you read this before proceeding. Take down policy Some pages of this thesis may have been removed for copyright restrictions prior to having it been deposited in Explore Bristol Research. However, if you have discovered material within the thesis that you consider to be unlawful e.g. breaches of copyright (either yours or that of a third party) or any other law, including but not limited to those relating to patent, trademark, confidentiality, data protection, obscenity, defamation, libel, then please contact [email protected] and include the following information in your message: •Your contact details •Bibliographic details for the item, including a URL •An outline nature of the complaint Your claim will be investigated and, where appropriate, the item in question will be removed from public view as soon as possible. National Identity and Experiences of Nationalism in Germany’s ‘Lost Territories’:
    [Show full text]
  • Place Names and Nationalism in the Czech-Polish Borderlands1)
    Mitteilungen der Österreichischen Geographischen Gesellschaft, 160. Jg., S. 303–329 (Annals of the Austrian Geographical Society, Vol. 160, pp. 303–329) Wien (Vienna) 2018, https://doi.org/10.1553/moegg160s303 City Divided: Place Names and Nationalism in the Czech-Polish Borderlands1) Přemysl Mácha, Horst Lassak, and Luděk Krtička, all Ostrava (Czechia)* Initial submission / erste Einreichung: 02/2018; revised submission / revidierte Fassung: 09/2018; final acceptance / endgültige Annahme: 12/2018 with 1 figure and 5 tables in the text Contents Zusammenfassung .......................................................................................................... 303 Summary ........................................................................................................................ 304 1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 304 2 Theoretical framework ............................................................................................. 305 3 Methods .................................................................................................................... 307 4 Teschen/Těšín/Cieszyn as a locus of nationalist conflict ......................................... 309 5 The politics of toponymy and the urban space ......................................................... 313 6 Conclusions .............................................................................................................. 324 7 References ...............................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • 2014-2020 JESSICA Evaluation Study for Nine Polish Regions
    2014-2020 JESSICA Evaluation Study for Nine Polish Regions: Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Łódzkie, Lubelskie, Małopolskie, Mazowieckie, Śląskie, Świętokrzyskie, Wielkopolskie, Zachodniopomorskie Final Report Part II 30 April 2014 DISCLAIMER: This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Sole responsibility for the views, interpretations or conclusions contained in this document lies with the authors. No representation or warranty express or implied will be made and no liability or responsibility is or will be accepted by the European Investment Bank or the European Commission in relation to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained in this document and any such liability is expressly disclaimed. This document is provided for information only. Neither the European Investment Bank nor the European Commission gives any undertaking to provide any additional information or correct any inaccuracies in it. | P a g e 2014-2020 JESSICA Evaluation Study for Nine Polish Regions 139 2014-2020 JESSICA Evaluation Study for Nine Polish Regions: Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Łódzkie, Lubelskie, Małopolskie, Mazowieckie, Śląskie, Świętokrzyskie, Wielkopolskie, Zachodniopomorskie Part II Submitted to: European Investment Bank Date: 7 April 2014 Version: Final Report Report completed by: Regional Project Managers: Cezary Gołębiowski, Marta Mackiewicz, Jacek Goliszewski, and Jan Fido Report reviewed by: Agnieszka Gajewska, Project Team Leader and Lily Vyas, JESSICA Programme Manager Report approved by: Bob Green, Partner, Mazars ©Mazars LLP. All rights reserved April 2014. This document is expressly provided by Mazars LLP to and solely for the use of the EIB and must not be quoted from, referred to, used by or distributed to any other party without the prior consent of the EIB.
    [Show full text]
  • Of Silesia Vol
    Cuius regio? Ideological and Territorial Cohesion of Silesia vol. 5 eds Lucyna Harc, Przemysław Wiszewski, Rościsław Żerelik Online access: http://www.bibliotekacyfrowa.pl/publication/78119 Joanna Nowosielska-Sobel, Grzegorz Strauchold, Przemysław Wiszewski Permanent Change. The New Region(s) of Silesia (1945-2015) ed. Przemysław Wiszewski Wrocław 2015 The book was published with funds of the program Cuius regio. Analiza sił spajających i destrukcyjnych w obrębie regionu określających przynależność osób (grup społecznych) oraz spójność społeczną jako zjawisko historyczne / Cuius regio. An analysis of the cohesive and disruptive forces destining the attachment of (groups of) persons to and the cohesion within regions as a historical phenomenon, decision of the Polish Minister of Science and Higher Education No. 832/N-ESF-CORECODE/2010/0. Peer review: Małgorzata Ruchniewicz Translated by: Matthew La Fontaine, Paweł Ausir Dembowski, Anna Lidia Błaszczyk, Piotr Szutt Language proofreading: Matthew La Fontaine, Judson Hamilton © Copyright by Authors and Uniwersytet Wrocławski Cover design: Marcin Fajfruk Typesetting: Aleksandra Kumaszka, Tomasz Kalota ISBN 978-83-942651-2-0 Publishing House eBooki.com.pl ul. Obornicka 37/2 51-113 Wrocław tel.: +48 602 606 508 email: [email protected] WWW: http://www.ebooki.com.pl Table of Contents Przemysław Wiszewski A time of transformation. New Silesia under construction (1945-2015) ............ 9 Joanna Nowosielska-Sobel Administrative changes....................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Online Conflict Discourse, Identity, and the Social Imagination of Silesian Minority in Poland by Krzysztof E
    Online Conflict Discourse, Identity, and the Social Imagination of Silesian Minority in Poland By Krzysztof E. Borowski © 2020 Krzysztof E. Borowski M.A., University of Wrocław, 2011 B.A., University of Wrocław, 2009 Submitted to the graduate degree program in Slavic Languages and Literatures and the Graduate Faculty of the University of Kansas in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Co-Chair: Marc L. Greenberg Co-Chair: Renee Perelmutter Svetlana Vassileva-Karagyozova Arienne Dwyer Nathan Wood Date Defended: 29 April 2020 ii The dissertation committee for Krzysztof E. Borowski certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation: Online Conflict Discourse, Identity, and the Social Imagination of Silesian Minority in Poland Co-Chair: Marc L. Greenberg Co-Chair: Renee Perelmutter Date Approved: 29 April 2020 iii Abstract The second decade of the twenty-first century has been that of digital nationalism. In particular, the 2016 United States presidential elections and Brexit vote in the United Kingdom have shown that the increased use of social media has raised popular nationalism (Whitmeyer 2002) to a whole new level. While Europe and other parts of the world have visibly become more globalized, the Northern Atlantic region has witnessed a contradictory tendency for the rise and spread of nationalist sentiment. Much of this phenomenon has been taking place on the internet where conditions of apparent anonymity created a fertile ground for uninhibited identity expressions and performances. From the United States to Poland, people have retreated to their stable, national identities as a way of coping with the various facets of liquid modernity, in which the need for networking pushes individuals to engage in community building by bonding with other individuals through shared emotions (Bauman 2006, 37).
    [Show full text]
  • OPOLE REGION and CENTRAL MORAVIA on the Trail of the Common Heritage of the Polish-Czech Borderland OPOLE REGION and CENTRAL MORAVIA
    EN active recreation cultural heritage promotional natural events heritage OPOLE REGION AND CENTRAL MORAVIA On the trail of the common heritage of the Polish-Czech borderland OPOLE REGION AND CENTRAL MORAVIA On the trail of the common heritage of the Polish-Czech borderland cultural heritage natural cultural natural heritage heritage heritage active recreation active promotional recreation events The brochure has been created within the project Cultural and Natural Heritage for the Development of Polish-Czech Borderland „Common Heritage” which is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund as part of the Programme INTERREG V-A Czech Republic – Poland and from the resources of the Self-Government of the Opolskie Voivodeship. promotional events Opolska Regionalna Organizacja Turystyczna ul. Żeromskiego 3 OPOLE REGION AND CENTRAL Ordering Party 45-053 Opole tel. +48 77 44 12 521 MORAVIA http://orot.pl On the trail of the common heritage of the Magdalena Budkiewicz Text Dominika Borówka-Sitnik Polish-Czech borderland Jolanta Sieradzka-Kasprzak Piotr Mielec Hundreds of monuments, unique museums, and a rich cul- Content Alicja Mroczek supervision Adam Krzyżanowski tural life, accompanied by a picturesque landscape and Adam Kraska priceless nature, create an extraordinary combination Jarosław Małkowski / BANKFOTO Archive of the Opole Regional Tourist Organisation and its members which attracts thousands of tourists every year. Where can Archive of the project Partner Střední Morava – Sdružení cestovního ruchu Portal www.dabrowskieskarby.pl – s.11 you find all this? On the Polish-Czech borderland: in the re- Prudnicki Ośrodek Kultury – s. 17 Miejski Ośrodek Sportu i Rekreacji w Opolu – s. 18 gion of Opole and Central Moravia.
    [Show full text]
  • Uclg Country Profiles
    UCLG COUNTRY PROFILES Republic of Poland ( Rzeczpospolita Polska) Capital: Warsaw Inhabitants: 38.500.696 (2007) Area: 312.679 km² 1. Introduction from different political group. The President of the Republic appoints the Prime Minister and the ministers; the Council of Ministers is answerable to the Sejm. After over 40-years of extremely centralised government during the communist period, the local government reform started in 1990 with the first fully democratic elections since before the Second World War to municipal (gmina) local governments taking place in May 1990. The second phase of decentralization Poland, with a population of 38.5 million reform took place in 1998 when two upper (2007) and area of 312,679 km², is the 8th tiers of elected self-governments were largest country in Europe (both in terms of created on a county (powiat) and regional area and population size). (województwo) level. The political system is defined by 1997 However, the gmina tier remains the only Constitution as a republic. The legislative one which is protected by the Polish power is vested in the Sejm (Diet – lower constitution, while the existence and shape chamber) and the Senate. The 460 of upper tiers is dependent on laws members of the Sejm are directly elected adopted by Parliament. The gmina is also according to a proportional system, the only tier enjoying a general whereas the 100 members of the Senate competence clause (although as many are directly elected according to a majority decisions of the Administrative Courts as system, both for a four year mandate. well as of the Constitutional Court suggest, the practical import of the clause is not The executive power is vested in the very significant, since it is often interpreted President of the Republic of Poland and the in a narrow way), while the ultra vires Council of Ministers.
    [Show full text]
  • Russian Federation's Constitution of 1918
    PDF generated: 26 Aug 2021, 16:45 constituteproject.org Russian Federation's Constitution of 1918 Historical This complete constitution has been generated from excerpts of texts from the repository of the Comparative Constitutions Project, and distributed on constituteproject.org. constituteproject.org PDF generated: 26 Aug 2021, 16:45 Table of contents Preamble . 3 SECTION I: DECLARATION OF RIGHTS OF THE LABORING AND EXPLOITED PEOPLE . 3 SECTION II: GENERAL PROVISIONS OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE RUSSIAN SOCIALIST FEDERATED SOVIET REPUBLIC . 5 SECTION III: CONSTRUCTION OF THE SOVIET POWER . 7 A. Organization of the Central Power . 7 Chapter Six: The All-Russian Congress of Soviets of Workers', Peasants', Cossacks', and Red Army Deputies . 7 Chapter Seven: The All-Russian Central Executive Committee . 8 Chapter Eight: The Council of People's Commissars . 9 Chapter Nine: Affairs In The Jurisdiction Of The All-Russian Congress And The All-Russian Central Executive Committee . 12 B. Organization of Local Soviets . 13 Chapter Ten: The Congresses of the Soviets . 13 Chapter Eleven: The Soviet of Deputies . 14 Chapter Twelve: Jurisdiction of the local organs of the Soviets . 15 SECTION IV: THE RIGHT TO VOTE . 16 Chapter Fourteen: Elections . 17 Chapter Fifteen: The checking and cancellation of elections and recall of the deputies . 18 SECTION V: THE BUDGET . 19 SECTION VI: THE COAT OF ARMS AND FLAG OF THE RUSSIAN SOCIALIST FEDERATED SOVIET REPUBLIC . 20 Russian Federation 1918 Page 2 constituteproject.org PDF generated: 26 Aug 2021, 16:45 • Source of constitutional authority • Preamble Preamble The declaration of rights of the laboring and exploited people (approved by the Third All-Russian Congress of Soviets in January, 1918), together with the constitution of the Soviet Republic, approved by the Fifth Congress, constitutes a single fundamental law of the Russian Socialist Federated Soviet Republic.
    [Show full text]